Faculty Research Publications (Music)http://hdl.handle.net/1957/317062015-03-03T22:45:45Z2015-03-03T22:45:45ZThe Effect of Subtitles on Listeners’ Perceptions of ExpressivitySilveira, Jason M.Diaz, Frank M.http://hdl.handle.net/1957/502652014-09-09T15:22:57Z2012-11-06T00:00:00ZThe Effect of Subtitles on Listeners’ Perceptions of Expressivity
Silveira, Jason M.; Diaz, Frank M.
The purpose of this study was to determine what effect, if any, subtitles would have on listeners’
perceptions of expressivity in an operatic performance. Specifically, this study addressed the
following research questions: (1) Will there be differences in perceived expressivity among three
listening conditions (audio only, audio + video, audio + video with subtitles)? (2) Will the listening
condition have an effect on listeners’ magnitude of response? (3) Will listening condition have an
effect on listeners’ stated focus of attention during the listening task? (4) Where during the stimulus
will listeners perceive moments of expressivity? A 13-minute excerpt from a live production of
Puccini’s La Bohème was used as the music stimulus. Participants (N = 103) were randomly
assigned to the experimental (audio + video, audio + video with subtitles) and control (audio only)
groups. Continuous data were collected via the Continuous Response Digital Interface (CRDI), and
summative data were collected via a post hoc questionnaire. Results revealed significant differences
in listeners’ continuous data among all three groups, with the audio condition evidencing the highest
response magnitude, and the subtitles group receiving the lowest response magnitude. No significant
differences were found among the groups with respect to summative perceptions of expressivity or
focus of attention. Implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.
This is an author's peer-reviewed final manuscript, as accepted by the publisher. The published article is copyrighted by the author(s) and published by Sage Publications. The published article can be found at: http://pom.sagepub.com/.
2012-11-06T00:00:00Z